Famous Mob Quotes (Part 3)

Part 3 of the most powerful quotes from the criminal underworld — from Greg Scarpa’s defiant stance to Santo Trafficante’s explosive deathbed confession, Joe Valachi’s kiss of death and Johnny Torrio handing his empire to Al Capone.

“There isn’t anything on earth that I will hide from or back up from”

Greg Scarpa — the Grim Reaper, one of the most feared enforcers in Colombo family history and a secret FBI informant for over 30 years. Scarpa’s double life — killer for the mob, asset for the Bureau — is one of the most extraordinary stories in American organised crime. He died in prison in 1994 from AIDS contracted through a blood transfusion.

“You’re dead, dear friend, you’re dead. You won’t get to the end of the street still walking”

Louis Campagna — Little New York, a senior figure in the Chicago Outfit under Al Capone and Frank Nitti. One of the most chilling predictions in mob history, delivered to a man who presumably did not make it to the end of the street.

“I have no control over anybody”

Tony Accardo — Joe Batters, the most enduring boss in Chicago Outfit history, delivered under oath what may be the most improbable statement in mob history. Accardo ran the Outfit from the 1940s until his death in 1992 and never spent a single night in prison. He was also never found to have control over anybody.

“I am an American citizen, first class”

Lucky Luciano — the architect of the modern American Mafia, who built the Commission and transformed organised crime into a national corporation. Deported to Italy in 1946 after having his sentence commuted for wartime cooperation with US Naval Intelligence, Luciano spent his remaining years in Naples and died of a heart attack in 1962.

“That was the beginning of the end of our thing”

Anthony Casso — Gaspipe, acting boss of the Lucchese family, whose cooperation with the government produced some of the most damaging revelations about NYPD corruption in the history of American organised crime. Two detectives who worked as mob assassins on his payroll were eventually convicted. Casso himself died in federal prison in 2020.

“It’s better to live one day as a lion than a hundred years as a lamb”

John Gotti — the Dapper Don, the most famous gangster in America for a decade. Acquitted three times, dubbed the Teflon Don, then destroyed by the testimony of his own underboss. He died in prison on June 10, 2002. He was 61.

“The United States of America versus Anthony Spilotro. Now what kind of odds are those?”

Tony Spilotro — the Chicago Outfit’s man in Las Vegas, whose brutal methods and increasing recklessness made him a liability. He was beaten to death by his own organisation in June 1986, along with his brother Michael.

“Carlos screwed up. We shouldn’t have killed John. We should have killed Bobby”

Santo Trafficante Jr — boss of the Tampa crime family and CIA asset in the plots against Castro. This reported deathbed statement, if authentic, remains one of the most explosive in organised crime history — implying direct mob involvement in the 1963 Kennedy assassination. Trafficante died of heart failure in 1987.

“For nearly a 30-year period after the Castellammarese War, no internal squabbles marred the unity of our family”

Joe Bonanno — founder of the Bonanno crime family and author of his own autobiography, A Man of Honor. One of the few mob bosses ever to write his memoirs and live to see them published. He died of heart failure in Tucson in 2002, aged 97.

“Hey Frank! This one’s for you!”

Vincent Gigante — reportedly shouted as he shot Frank Costello in the lobby of Costello’s apartment building in 1957, on orders from Vito Genovese. The bullet only grazed Costello’s head. He survived. Gigante went on to become boss of the Genovese family himself, wandering his neighbourhood in a bathrobe for decades to feign mental illness.

“You sons of bitches, I got a family”

Johnny Dio — the labour racketeer who ordered the acid blinding of journalist Victor Riesel in 1956. The statement is notable for its naked appeal to sentiment from a man who showed none toward others. Dio died in prison in 1979.

“Accardo had more brains for breakfast than Capone had in a lifetime”

Paul Ricca — the Waiter, who succeeded Frank Nitti as boss of the Chicago Outfit. His assessment of Tony Accardo has been endorsed by history — Accardo ran the Outfit for five decades without losing a night’s sleep in prison, making him the most successful crime boss in American history by any measure.

“Nothing doing. The boys’ll get ’em. It’s nobody’s business but mine who put these slugs in me!”

Owney Madden — the Liverpool-born New York gangster who ran bootlegging and the Cotton Club during Prohibition. Shot multiple times, he declined to cooperate with police — standard practice, but delivered here with characteristic flair. He eventually retired to Hot Springs, Arkansas and died of natural causes in 1965.

“We shot him in the head, stuffed him in the trunk, then dumped him for good”

Nino Gaggi — capo in the Gambino family and the man who brought Roy DeMeo into the organisation. Gaggi’s matter-of-fact description of disposing of a body is a reminder of how normalised murder became within the DeMeo crew’s operations. He died of a heart attack in federal custody in 1988.

“It’s all yours, Al. Me? I’m quitting. It’s Europe for me!”

Johnny Torrio — the man who built the Chicago Outfit and mentored Al Capone. After being shot multiple times by the North Side Gang in 1925, Torrio handed everything to the 26-year-old Capone and retired. He returned to New York years later and died of a heart attack in a barber’s chair in 1957, aged 75.

“He grabbed my hand and he gave me a kiss. This was a suspicious kiss. This was the kiss of death”

Joe Valachi — the first made member of Cosa Nostra ever to testify publicly about the organisation’s existence. His 1963 Senate testimony blew open the Mafia’s secrets to the world. The kiss he received from Vito Genovese in prison — which he interpreted as a death sentence — was the moment that pushed him toward cooperation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What did Santo Trafficante say about the Kennedy assassination?

Trafficante reportedly said on his deathbed: “Carlos screwed up. We shouldn’t have killed John. We should have killed Bobby.” If authentic, it is one of the most explosive statements in organised crime history — implying direct mob involvement in the 1963 Kennedy assassination.

What did Paul Ricca say about Tony Accardo?

“Accardo had more brains for breakfast than Capone had in a lifetime.” History has endorsed the verdict — Accardo ran the Chicago Outfit for five decades and never spent a night in prison.

What did John Gotti say about living like a lion?

“It’s better to live one day as a lion than a hundred years as a lamb.” The quote defines Gotti’s entire philosophy — the embrace of power and risk over ordinary life. He spent his final years dying of cancer in a federal prison cell.

What did Joe Valachi say about the kiss of death?

“He grabbed my hand and he gave me a kiss. This was a suspicious kiss. This was the kiss of death.” Valachi received the kiss from Vito Genovese in prison and interpreted it as a death sentence — the moment that pushed him toward becoming the first Cosa Nostra member to testify publicly about the Mafia.